With the Spring comes renewed energy...

Written by Donna Stein on 04 January 2010.

...for NYC Friends of Clearwater!

There is increasing interest in our club and activities as new members and past members join us in our new meeting space. February saw our most well attended PotLuck SingAlong gathering since I have been with the club. The space, a warm inviting room in a Greenwich Village Church, the energy put into the phone tree, calling people to come to the meetings, and terrific speakers is the winning formula.

Clearwater people from the other sloop clubs as well as our “parent” organization, the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater help guide us into the next levels of NYCFCʼs growth.

This past February, Roger Meyer, founder of LevelM Inc branding company and a board member of Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, spoke on how we can best build awareness of our club and our environmental goals. Clearwater is lucky to have him.

John McLoughlin, past President of the Beacon Sloop Club, is coming to speak with us on March 18th. John crews on the Woody Guthrie Sloop and is a long time sailor and environmental activist. He will be talking about focusing on core issues and interests. John works with the teen group Say Something Café, which was inspired by the documentary Pete Seeger: The Power of Song. I look forward to hearing more about them as we move to bring more young people into the environmental discussion.

Gigi black sex
Fris, maintenance coordinator of the Woody Guthrie at BSC. Gigi will give us the benefit of her experiences and what pitfalls to avoid. Gigi is always an energetic fun speaker.

Rosemary Thomas is the current President of BSC. She will be sharing her considerable expertise in what it takes to run the biggest Sloop Club and the enormous volunteer effort and fundraising they do.

Other than organizational building our focus for speakers are around the major issues of clean water and clean waterways. We seek to coalition with the organizations championing them. Riverkeeperʼs Executive Director, Paul Gallay, has agreed to speak with us, addressing issues most pressing of our beloved Hudson River. Come with questions and expect the discussion to be lively and informative.

When we can confidently eat the fish from New Yorkʼs waterways then we can stop educating ourselves and the community. We have a ways to go.

A new logo was presented for NYCFC by mikesamuelgraphics.com. It was proposed that we use it in the interim and run a contest to see if there are any other entries. If interested please submit your graphic designs and we will vote our preference.

Earth Day is in April and we have opportunities at several local colleges to do some tabling. Let us know if you will be available to volunteer in Manhattan, Brooklyn or Queens.

May 29th is our Annual “Walk for the River”. We are looking for some musicians to walk along with us on this fundraising stroll along lower Manhattan. Come and join in.

Volunteers are needed to represent NYCFC at the Hudson River Revival June 17th – 19th. Ken Katz is coordinating the staffing of our table in the Sloop tent. We urge all members to come over to the table and contribute some time. Volunteers get a discount on fees but you have to decide soon.

Soon after the Revival, NYC Friends of Clearwater will be holding our 3rd Annual Water Festival at Pier 66 Maritime in NYC. The honoree this year, John Krevey, was a huge friend of the waterfront who sadly passed recently. John generously supported many events on his Pier66 Maritime/Frying Pan. We celebrate his life and accomplishments. Speakers will center around the many water organizations John touched; water issues affecting peoples lives; and Youth groups involved with the environment. And there will be lots of wonderful music as always!

If you are not yet a member or have yet to renew join now! Help up extend our reach to even more environmentally conscious people.

NYC Friends of Clearwater is a Chartered Sloop Club of the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater organization.